Big bonuses reward ‘formidable effort’ by Norwegian salmon farmer’s staff

Norwegian salmon farmer Nova Sea has paid an average of NOK 231,000 – around £17,738 – in bonuses and associated costs to each of its 274 employees in recognition of their work last year.

“In Nova Sea, the employees are our most important resource, and our employees have put in a formidable effort for the company in 2022,” the company’s management told website Helgelands Blad.

The bonus is paid on the basis of achievement targets for each individual department, and for the company as a whole.

The average cost for this year's bonus was NOK 231,000 per man-year, including the extra employer’s tax, holiday pay and pension that the company incurred by paying the bonus. The bonus is the same for management and employees of the company.

B shares

Employees are also given the opportunity to buy B shares in the company and then receive the same share of dividend per share as the A shareholders whose shares generally have more voting rights. This gives all employees the opportunity to receive part of the dividend in the company.

Of a total share dividend of NOK 700 million, around NOK 16 million accrued to owners of B shares, according to Helgelands Blad’s calculation based on information in the company’s accounts.

Lovund-based Nova Sea is one of the largest producers of farmed salmon northern Norway, producing around 44,000 gtted weight tonnes of Atlantic salmon last year. It operates 21 farms of its own, four in conjunction with Tomma Laks AS, and two with Vega Sjøfarm AS.

Its processing plant on Lovund can handle 350 tonnes of fresh salmon and produce 25 tonnes of salmon fillet per day and employs more than 130 people. It also operates a visitor centre in Oslo.